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2590

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US #2590 1994 Surrender of Burgoyne

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Stamp design originally intended as part of 1869 pictorial series

Engraving done by world renown stamp engraver

Issued with collectors in mind

Category of Stamp: Definitive Value: $1 First Day of Issue: May 5, 1994 First Day City: New York, New York Quantity Issued: 300,000,000 Printed by: Stamp Venturers Printing Method/Format: Engraved. Panes of 20, from printing plates of 120 (8 across, 15 down) Perforations: 11.5 Color: Blue

Reason the stamp was issued: This stamp was issued with collectors in mind. Its design was intended to be issued in 1869.

About the stamp design: The $1 stamp is based on a painting by John Trumbull, The Surrender of General Burgoyne at Saratoga, which hands in the US Capitol Rotunda. An essay produced in 1869 was the inspiration for the stamp design. It was engraved by world renown engraver Czeslaw Slania.

Special design details: This was the third time the US Postal Service depicted Burgoyne’s surrender at Saratoga. The first (#644) was issued in 1927, and the second (1728) was released in 1977 to commemorate the bicentennial of the event.

First Day City: The stamp was dedicated at the opening of the American Stamp Dealers Association’s Postage Stamp Mega-Event. This was held at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Jack Rosenthal, the owner of the 1869 essay used as a model for the stamp, spoke at the ceremony.

History the stamp represents: On October 17, 1777, British General Burgoyne surrendered at Saratoga – one of the major American victories of the American Revolution. After the first two years of fighting, the British changed their strategy. Rather than trying to conquer the New England colonies, they planned to separate them from what they considered to be the more loyal middle and southern colonies. British General John Burgoyne believed New York’s Hudson River Valley was the perfect route for an invasion and developed a three-prong attack.

Burgoyne departed Canada on June 13, 1777 and by August his forces had captured Fort Ticonderoga and defeated the Americans at Hubbardton, Vermont. But the American victory at the Battle of Bennington cost him 1,000 soldiers and the support of his Native American allies. In September, Burgoyne continued his march south, with his supplies floating down the Hudson on boats. At the same time, Horatio Gates and his American troops began constructing defenses at Bemis Heights, a series of bluffs overlooking the Hudson and the road Burgoyne was marching down. Around noon on September 19, Burgoyne’s center column encountered Colonel Daniel Morgan’s American light infantry at John Freeman’s Farm. The fighting broke out immediately and throughout the course of the afternoon, each side took and lost the field several times. When Burgoyne ordered a detachment of 500 German troops to his aid, the Americans abandoned the field, leaving it in British control.Days later Burgoyne received word that General Henry Clinton could send additional troops from New York City, so he ordered his men to dig in and wait for their arrival. By early October Clinton had captured a few American forts along the way, but was called back to New York City, unable to assist Burgoyne. As his army grew short on supplies, time and manpower, Burgoyne sent out a 1,500-man reconnaissance force on October 7, to attack the American left. As the men stopped in Barber Wheatfield to harvest the much-needed food, they were discovered by American troops. The 13,000-man American army attacked and surrounded the British troop, forcing them to abandon their defensive position. With few options, Burgoyne and his men packed whatever supplies they could and quickly retreated north. When they reached the village of Saratoga, they found themselves almost entirely surrounded and set up a fortified camp. Within two days they were completely surrounded. Negotiations went on for a week until October 17, when Burgoyne surrendered to Gates. The surrender was a tremendous victory for America, often considered the turning point of the war. It proved that American troops could battle a European army on their own terms and win. The battle also convinced France, Spain, and the Netherlands to fully support the American cause and declare war against England. The American Revolution was now a “world war” and the British would see battle in the Caribbean, Mediterranean, North Africa, South Africa, and India.

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